Celebrity Stats

The marriage of Madonna and film director Guy Ritchie is close to breakdown, the News of the World claims today.

Material Girl Madonna and the Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels director married six years ago and have two sons together – six-year-old Rocco and newly-adopted Malawian baby David.

Madonna, 48, also has a ten-year-old daughter, Lourdes, from a previous relationship.

However the pressures of a new baby plus the criticism the pair received due to the whirlwind adoption of David has reportedly strained their relationship.

Madonna's passion for the Jewish mystical tradition Kabbala and her reportedly controlling tendencies have also led to the breakdown of the couple.

"They're in total meltdown and row non-stop whenever they see each other," a source close to the couple tells the newspaper.

"They've been at loggerheads for a while and now hardly do anything together. They're even spending more and more nights in separate bedrooms."

However the final straw was said to be when Ritchie decided not to accompany Madonna on a return trip to Malawi.

"They're a united front when their children are involved. This was clearly visible when they were pictured this week out in the park as a family. But behind closed doors they barely speak," the friend warned.